Mayor De Blasio Addresses Times Square’s Costumed Characters

Mayor Bill de Blasio is promising that the NYPD will go after costumed characters in Times Square who behave badly.

We have a lot of NYPD presence in Times Square. We are going to make sure that NYPD has everything they need there to very aggressively enforce the law,” De Blasio said.

Over the weekend, a man dressed as Elmo was arrested for allegedly groping a 14-year-old girl.

“Anyone who does something like that, if it breaks the law, we will be all over them,” de Blasio said.

The mayor pointed to zones created in Times Square that are designed to restrict where the costumed characters can take pictures with tourists and ask for tips. De Blasio did not announce any new policy to address the bad behavior.